Science finds the best time to strength train during your menstrual cycle

By Stuart Marsh| 2 years ago

The first two weeks of the menstrual cycle is your "go time". (Image) iStock

How to plan your training for when your body's truly ready for it.

One key to a solid exercise routine is knowing that you won't be on top of your game every time you hit the gym – some days, you just can't muster the energy to get out of the shower, let alone lift weights for an hour.

But new research from Sweden may have found something that can help change all that.

Scientist from Umea University have discovered that the best time for females to do hard core strength training is during the first two weeks of their menstrual cycle.

The reason why, speculate the researchers, is because this is when the female hormonal system is primed for maximum strength, speed and power.

For Lisbeth Wisktrom-Frisen, a doctoral student who led the study, this finding breaks new ground when it comes to creating tailored strength programs for women.

"How the menstrual cycle can affect training is in general an unexplored research area," says Wikstrom-Frisen.

"As most sports-related research has been performed on male participants, there are on the whole not much scientific knowledge of how women can optimise their training based upon the hormone cycle."

To reach this conclusion, the researchers invited 59 women into the lab and had them complete a gruelling, four-month long resistance training plan that involved high frequency leg training up to five times a week.

(In all honesty, it sounds like the perfect recipe for the DOMS of hell.)

By analysing what stage of their menstrual cycles the women were on, and then comparing that against their physical performance, the researchers were able to pinpoint that the first two weeks were the most efficient for hitting the gym.

"Since menstruation is a central part in everyday life for women and their training, we need to become better at taking this into account when optimising training," says Wikstrom-Frisen.

Interestingly, the researchers also found that there was no statistical significance between whether the women were on birth control or not, downplaying rumours that taking the pill can dent your training performance.